We, Joanne Aboud, Loredana Di Marco, Katie Loncar and Raymond Zeaiter, are a group of third year BT/BA students at ACU Strathfield, and we have chosen to address the following scenario:
"The school is co-educational and draws from a wide cross section of students who come from a diverse range of backgrounds comprising non-English speaking families from different cultures, and Aboriginal cultures. You have 25 students in your new year 11 class. One third of the students are very interested and motivated about History and have achieved Bands 5 & 6 in the School Certificate History examinations, they have developed excellent source analysis, research, ICT and inquiry skills. One third of your class have chosen History because they like you as a teacher and their friends are doing this subject, but may not have good source analysis skills and at times need more assistance with ICT and writing. One third of the class dislike History or are apathetic. They are in this class because Business Studies was cancelled. This part of the class are not pleased to be there and are considering if they will stay at school and finish the HSC. These students may struggle to be engaged and develop the critical skills required for History. You also have one student who is not good with his social skills and you are worried about his performance in any group task. You also need to consider that History must continue to get good results in the HSC not only for the students but also for the School Executive that may limit the senior class to one and your faculty could lose Modern or Ancient History and you could lose your position. You also want to take the History Extension class next year (if there are enough numbers) so you want to encourage and support the high achieving students to do well. You have term one to do a case study, but must consider the variations to routine that exist in your school such as pastoral care operating for the juniors that your students will lead, a swimming carnival and elections for the school representative council. You also will have some of the high achieving students away for assemblies as some are prefects."
We have chosen The Fall and Decline of the Romanov Dynasty as the case study to focus on for Part I of the Preliminary HSC syllabus in order to address this scenario.
Relevance
The fall and decline of the Romanov dynasty is relevant to students in the preliminary HSC course for a number of reasons. Should the teacher elect the topic Russia 1917-1941 for Part II: National Studies for the HSC course, this case study sets up appropriate background knowledge and concepts. These key concepts such as socialism also contribute to students’ knowledge about today’s society and government, such as the recent 2010 elections. This topic has further relevance for students today in the context of the ongoing republican debate in Australia.
Possible Engagement Factor
This topic has a potentially high engagement factor. Teachers can utilise the secrecy surrounding the death of the Romanov family to create an air of mystery. In addition to this idea, this topic provides links to other significant events of world history such as the lasting communist regimes of the USSR and China, as well as the Cold War, which can be used to further generate student interest. Ultimately, engagement factor depends on the student. A third of the students show an interest in modern history and this topic provides something different for the usual to satisfy student interest.
Level of Difficulty
The Fall and Decline of the Romanov Dynasty is the first topic of senior history that the students will study, so it requires further development of already existing historical skills and investigation for all students in the class, regardless of their level. Students who are more interested in the subject and in the teacher will show higher levels of motivation in response to difficulties presented by the topic. However, the remainder of the class needs to be considered. With no motivation to study they will find the case study to be difficult. This may also lead to classroom management issues, increasing the difficulty of teaching.
Prior Knowledge Needed
Students have been engaged in historical study since the beginning of year 7 and have had the opportunity to develop historical and research skills over history stages 4 and 5. For this topic students will need to utilise skills such as source analysis and inquiry skills, and this topic will help to further develop such skills.
Key Concepts
Autocracy: Nicholas II as an autocratic ruler- Was he effective? Why/why not?
The problems facing the Romanov Dynasty: political, geography, economic, social, cultural.
Industrialisation: The impact of industrialisation on Russian social classes, as well as the Tsarist regime.
Revolution: The cause and effect of Bloody Sunday and the 1905 and 1917 revolutions.
Reformation: The cause and effect of political, economic and social grievances- Russo-Japanese War, October Manifesto, Stolypin’s reforms and the recovery of Tsarism.
The tsar’s failure to address the problems of Russia
The role of World War One in the fall of the Tsarist Regime- constant defeat, Tsar at the frontline- decline in authority, economic problems.
Glossary
Terms
Meaning
Autocrat
Ruler with unrestricted or absolute power.
Bloody Sunday
Striking ironworkers on a peaceful march to the Winter Palace were shot down by Cossack troops on 9 January 1905
Bolsheviks
The majority group of the Social Democrats after 1903, led by Lenin
Commune
Basic peasant social unit in the countryside linked to a communally worked farm
Duma
Parliament established after the 1905 revolution which, together with the State Council, made up by the Russian legislature from 1906-1917
Kadets
The political party formed after the 1905 revolution and headed by Paval Milyukov, made up of middle-class liberals who wanted a constitutional government based on an elected legislature
Marxists
Followers of Karl Marx who believed it was inevitable that a proletarian revolution would overthrow capitalist society
Menshevik
The minority group of the Social Democrats formed after the party split in 1903
October Manifesto
The tsar’s promise in 1905 of the creation of an elected legislative parliament and the granting of civil liberties
Octobrists
Conservative liberal party created in 1905 that accepted the October Manifesto and sought no further reform until after the outbreak of the First World War
Okhrana
Tsarist secret police
Petrograd
Name given to St Petersburg in 1914 as an anti-German gesture
Putilov iron works
A huge iron foundry in St Petersburg and centre of proletarian dissent
Romanov
The last ruling dynasty in Russia 1613-1917
Russification
The imposition of Russian language and culture on the non-Russian peoples of the Russian empire
Russo-Japanese War
The war between Russia and Jaoan in 1904 over the control of Korea and Manchuria
Social Democrats
Marxist socialist and political party, which in 1903 split into Mensheviks led by Martov, and Bolsheviks led by Lenin
Social revolutionaries
Peasant-based socialist party founded in 1902. By 1917 it was the most popular party in Russia
Soviet
Worker’s and soldier’s council
St Petersburg
Capital city of the Russian empire, built by Peter the Great
Tsar
The autocratic emperor of Russia
Tsarina
The empress of Russia, wife of the Tsar
Zemstva
Institutions of local self-government in European Russia.
"The school is co-educational and draws from a wide cross section of students who come from a diverse range of backgrounds comprising non-English speaking families from different cultures, and Aboriginal cultures. You have 25 students in your new year 11 class. One third of the students are very interested and motivated about History and have achieved Bands 5 & 6 in the School Certificate History examinations, they have developed excellent source analysis, research, ICT and inquiry skills. One third of your class have chosen History because they like you as a teacher and their friends are doing this subject, but may not have good source analysis skills and at times need more assistance with ICT and writing. One third of the class dislike History or are apathetic. They are in this class because Business Studies was cancelled. This part of the class are not pleased to be there and are considering if they will stay at school and finish the HSC. These students may struggle to be engaged and develop the critical skills required for History. You also have one student who is not good with his social skills and you are worried about his performance in any group task. You also need to consider that History must continue to get good results in the HSC not only for the students but also for the School Executive that may limit the senior class to one and your faculty could lose Modern or Ancient History and you could lose your position. You also want to take the History Extension class next year (if there are enough numbers) so you want to encourage and support the high achieving students to do well. You have term one to do a case study, but must consider the variations to routine that exist in your school such as pastoral care operating for the juniors that your students will lead, a swimming carnival and elections for the school representative council. You also will have some of the high achieving students away for assemblies as some are prefects."
We have chosen The Fall and Decline of the Romanov Dynasty as the case study to focus on for Part I of the Preliminary HSC syllabus in order to address this scenario.
Relevance
The fall and decline of the Romanov dynasty is relevant to students in the preliminary HSC course for a number of reasons. Should the teacher elect the topic Russia 1917-1941 for Part II: National Studies for the HSC course, this case study sets up appropriate background knowledge and concepts. These key concepts such as socialism also contribute to students’ knowledge about today’s society and government, such as the recent 2010 elections. This topic has further relevance for students today in the context of the ongoing republican debate in Australia.
Possible Engagement Factor
This topic has a potentially high engagement factor. Teachers can utilise the secrecy surrounding the death of the Romanov family to create an air of mystery. In addition to this idea, this topic provides links to other significant events of world history such as the lasting communist regimes of the USSR and China, as well as the Cold War, which can be used to further generate student interest. Ultimately, engagement factor depends on the student. A third of the students show an interest in modern history and this topic provides something different for the usual to satisfy student interest.
Level of Difficulty
The Fall and Decline of the Romanov Dynasty is the first topic of senior history that the students will study, so it requires further development of already existing historical skills and investigation for all students in the class, regardless of their level. Students who are more interested in the subject and in the teacher will show higher levels of motivation in response to difficulties presented by the topic. However, the remainder of the class needs to be considered. With no motivation to study they will find the case study to be difficult. This may also lead to classroom management issues, increasing the difficulty of teaching.
Prior Knowledge Needed
Students have been engaged in historical study since the beginning of year 7 and have had the opportunity to develop historical and research skills over history stages 4 and 5. For this topic students will need to utilise skills such as source analysis and inquiry skills, and this topic will help to further develop such skills.
Key Concepts
Glossary